An Assessment of Cruelty
by KathrynValmont
Summary: In order for Kathryn to return to Manchester Prep she must undergo a psychological evaluation. For the first time she will fully divulge the truth on her life, her relationship with Sebastian and what really happened
1. Chapter 1

**"Adolescence is a difficult time. And without great parenting things can go awry,"-Regina Greenbaum**

I have been a psychologist for about twenty years. I believe that I have dealt with every sort of case one could possibly imagine. About eight months ago my long time friend Richard Hardgrove took a job in New York as the headmaster at Manchester Preparatory.

When he first informed me that there was a position available as a psychologist at that school, I turned it down. I've lived many different places but when I settled down with my wife in Kansas City I knew that that would be the very last time we moved. There is something peaceful about this city and the people here are friendly. Your neighbors quickly become close friends.

Richard can be somewhat persuasive when he wants something. We had coffee late in the summer one afternoon. He told me how much his daughter was enjoying New York. I should have known at that moment where the conversation was headed. He admitted to me that he was somewhat apprehensive about the move because all of his friends and family lived here. I of course sympathized with his situation. As I've previously stated I've moved around a bit over the years.

He asked if I would reconsider taking the job at Manchester. I was about to once again decline his offer when he handed me a letter from the school board, stating all of the qualifications that were required to be considered for the position. The salary immediately caught my attention. It was almost twice the amount I was currently making.

My wife had attended college on the East Coast and had fond memories of her time there. It's important to choose a woman who will always support all of your major decisions. If I decided to accept the position I know she would agree to it. It was already August which gave me about a month to get my affairs in order.

I have a good friend down here in real estate who would help us sell our modest home as we relocated to New York. Richard put me in touch with someone associated with Manchester who helped us find a place to live. Looking back, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. If I had, I believe that I would have still accepted the position.

Manchester's fall semester began early in September. The sombre note it started on should have been the first indication that my life would never be the same. I had many students to see from the very first day because of what had happened that very morning. I should tell you about the events that had led up to that morning.

Richard's daughter had gone to New York before he had. She stayed at Helen Rosemond's house. She has always been very involved with the school, and has a pleasant disposition. While Annette lived there temporarily, Ms. Rosemond's nephew Sebastian came to visit her. I'm sure you can already tell what direction this story is heading in.

In any event, Annette fell in love with Sebastian. She had previously had an article published in Seventeen magazine discussing her views about waiting until marriage to have sex. As she fell in love with Sebastian, she failed to realize that there was more to the situation than what met the eye.

Sebastian had made a bet with his stepsister that he could bed Annette before school began. In exchange Kathryn would be required to sleep with him. Sebastian had succeeded in his task. Kathryn in the end had refused him. He had broken it off but he realized the errors of his ways and wanted to change. To make a long story short, Annette witnessed his death. He had been hit by a cab afterpushing Annette out of the way.

The story doesn't quite end there. Sebastian had given Annette his journal, which detailed every conquest he had ever had. Also contained within the journal was every secret of Kathryn's. Annette had made enough copies for every student to have.

Up until that point Kathryn had more or less been considered a saint. She held a pristine reputation and was the student body president. I had to deal with students who were struck by Sebastian's untimely death. Most of them were more devastated by Kathryn's true nature. According to Sebastian's journal she had hurt every person who had ever come into contact with her.

That was just the first day of school. Kathryn had been shipped off to some fancy rehab where she could recover. The story that I am about to tell you didn't happen for another six months, not too far away from the seniors' graduation date. Now I must inform you that this story isn't meant to be taken lightly. It's quite tragic and somewhat disturbing at certain points. Can this story possibly have a happy ending? In this case I suppose it is all a matter of perception.

****  
In the middle of the day Roger arrived at my office with Annette wondering if they both could speak with me in private. Annette shut the door before sitting next to her father directly across from me.

"I received a phone call this morning from Tiffini Valmont. She's Kathryn Merteuil's mother, Sebastian's step mother," explained Roger.

"What was her reason for contacting you?"

"Her daughter has completed her rehabilitation program in Los Angeles. The short end of it is that she is threatening to sue the school if her daughter isn't readmitted."

"And that can never happen," interjected Annette desperately.

"My hands are tied. I can only imagine two different outcomes. She will either persuade the school board to readmit her or else she will sue this school," said Roger heavily.

"Who cares about her mother? It's Kathryn that you should be concerned with! You do not know what she is capable of. If she comes back here she will be out for blood," Annette insisted.

"What makes you say that?" I asked.

"I took away Sebastian and I ruined her reputation. She will want revenge," explained Annette.

"Do you think she genuinely cared about Sebastian?" I wondered out loud.

"Kathryn is incapable of caring about anyone but herself. I'm sure she believes that she did though," responded Annette.

"Surely there must be some way where everyone can compromise," I suggested.

"I've thought about it all morning. What if she were to meet with you and undergo a psychological evaluation of sorts? If you believe her to be a danger to others we can hardly allow her back into this school. However if she has changed, we will allow her to return," shrugged Roger.

"Do not underestimate her," said Annette.

"I'd be willing to meet with her," I agreed.

Annette opened her bag and took out what appeared to be a copy of Sebastian's journal. She then proceeded to take out magazine clippings of Kathryn before the incident and after.

"I will get her file and bring it to you," announced Roger before leaving with his daughter.

*****  
As Kathryn entered my office a week later I could understand how she had fooled everyone around her. She was petite with dark brown hair. How could one eighteen-year-old be responsible for such destruction? The superior smile she graced me with allowed me to assume that I would soon find out.

"I'm Dr. Martin," I introduced myself, getting up to shake her hand.

"They told me as much. I can only assume that you know who I am," she aloofly responded.

"Indeed."

"Well let's not waste our time with pleasantries," she said.

"Would you like to tell me a bit about yourself?"

"I've decided to tell you a story of sorts. Please do the both of us a favor and play close attention. I do hate repeating myself."

"I'm intrigued."

"I want the school board to hear our session. You can call it an assessment of cruelty," she states, handing me a tape recorder.

I watched her with undisguised interest. That was the moment that I realized that I had no idea what I had gotten myself into.

"You should feel honored. The only other person who ever got to see this side of me was Sebastian. Oh, where should I begin? I suppose my relationship with my mother is as good as any other place to start.

I cannot tell you just how aggravating it is that my mother receives so much credit for how I turned out to be. She may never win mother of the year but even she couldn't possibly be responsible for the person sitting in front of you. My brand of cruelty is my greatest creation. In more words or less I'm a work of art.

Sebastian would detest how much of a martyr everyone has made him out to be, how everyone blames his father. In his case, he was much more appreciated when he was alive. I suppose that he should be grateful, considering the circumstances. Most artists are only appreciated after they die.

Contrary to popular belief we didn't suffer psychologically because of our parents'lack of attention."

"What is it you suffer from then?"

"You'll understand everything by the time I'm through. I promise. Not only were we artists but talented actors in every sense of the word. What good would it have done us to be surrounded by the two people who could have stop us? We were the actors who had written the script and directed their picture. Our parents were simply our financial backers.

I have always lived my life in the spot light. Sebastian has always been the only one allowed to stand in it with me."

"What about the bet?" I almost hesitated to ask her. This is a side of her I had not quite anticipated. Of course I wasn't disappointed by the turn of events. She graced me with a smile that one could describe as demonic.

"I was just about to tell you all about it. I want to make sure you had a firm grasp on our family dynamics. You wouldn't be trying to get me out of here already, now would you?" She graces me with a different type of smile, one that speaks of her superiority.

"Please continue, Kathryn. You have my undivided attention."

"I figured as much. Well, since you did ask about the bet I should probably tell you a few things first."


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: For those of you who couldn't tell by the ending of the movie, that I don't own anything related with Cruel Intentions... I just want to make it clear that nothing belongs to me._

**"I need you for my happiness, but more importantly for my peace of mind."-Valmont, Les Liaisons Dangereuses (pg 29)**

"There are hardly words that could accurately describe the relationship I shared with Sebastian. From the moment our eyes first connected something was born that was as seductive as it was deadly. They say there's a fine love between love and hate. The line between the opposing emotions can only be called by its true name. Obsession."

"I'm sure you're quite aware that I've read his journal."

"Why wouldn't you have? Everyone else already has."

"From what I read from his journal, up until he fell in love with Annette, you were his obsession."

I watched her eyes turn to complete ice. I noted to refrain from bringing that up again. She went on as if I hadn't made my last statement.

"People fail to realize what our wager truly consisted of. Why would the stakes be considered high when we had previously shared a sexual relationship?"

I felt a sense of surprise but I tried to keep my face passive. From everything I've read I always believed that that was the point. Sebastian had blatantly written that in no uncertain terms, he would finally have what he always wanted from her. It seemed to be his own personal Holy Grail.

"Are you surprised?"

"Very much so," I admitted.

"I'm glad to hear that. It wouldn't be as amusing to me if you weren't. The stakes were as high as possible," she declared.

"What exactly do you mean by that?" At that point it stopped being about whether or not she should return to Manchester. I was now part of her game. I realized it the moment she walked into my office. But I really didn't care.

"His car was a prized possession of his that was only rivaled by his need to possess me, to have me for himself. In that manner everyone was correct. One of the terms of the bet was that if he failed, his car would belong to me."

"What would happen if he won?"

"I would leave all of this behind and be with him," she explained.

"Was there a part of you that wanted that to happen?"

"Have you not been paying attention? We kept the other breathing. Without him in my life I would be left to my own devices, a bitter young woman in New York's society slowly dying every single day. There could be no one else."

"But the bet was contingent on him being with someone else," I interjected.

"He had been with many women regardless of our desires. It would be a miracle if that has escaped your knowledge."

"I see what you mean."

"I don't really think you do. This was our ultimate game. I knew he'd be successful. The bet had nothing to do with deflowering her. It had everything to do with forcing my hand and allowing this to be our last game, our final challenge."

"And it would be. Just not the way you anticipated."

"We haven't gotten to that part of the story."

She smiled as an incredulous expression formed on my face. Looking back, I now know I was in way over my head. As I waited for her to continue I contemplated what she had told me. She had shed light on a perspective no one believed possible.

"How long before the two of you to slept together the first time?"

"Minutes, hours, days, months and years."

"Which one is it?"

"All of them. We hold a relationship that knows no beginning and has no ending. Our relationship snared the two of us in a cage that threatened to suffocate the both of us. But freedom came at too high a cost."

"His death?"

"Something like that," she paused, coyly, "Our freedom from the other would cause a feeling of emptiness that nothing could fill, a destruction no one could stop. We were so much better off in our cage painted with the colors of possession and obsession. I'm going to help you understand the nature of our relationship. In order to do so, I must help you understand Sebastian first."

"I'm intrigued."

"Since we discussed my mother, however briefly, I feel compelled to speak of my stepfather. I always sympathized with Sebastian where his Father was concerned. He has no backbone whatsoever. This is a problem because most people think of Sebastian as being just like his father. Edward lacks imagination as well as finesse. He is more or less an embarrassment to all of those who come into contact with him, my mother included. Naturally, that serves me just fine."

"What else would you like to tell me about Sebastian?"

"Sebastian needed me before he ever met me. Subconsciously he had spent the last few years searching for me.. He was empty on the inside, vacant like a blank canvas."

"You really don't believe your parents had anything to do with what the two of you became?"

"My father had a heart attack and died on my seventh birthday. Before I turned eight, my mother remarried. I suppose if one wanted to blame a parental figure, it would be him. He was the only person in my life who loved me. It taught me something important at a young age. I should never be too attached to anyone. Everyone will either leave you or die. All people are dispensable."

"What about Sebastian?".

"Sebastian's mother was very miserable and had been addicted to various substances his entire life. He fell asleep next to her and woke up the next morning to a lifeless body."

"Did he ever talk about it with you?"

"One night Sebastian came home wasted. He came to my room, confessing to me that he had just come from visiting his mother's grave. He then told me what had happened to her. After he finished his story, I realized he was crying."

"What was your reaction? After all, you said yourself you don't believe in attachments."

"It wasn't so much an attachment as it was a necessity. I wrapped my arms around him as he laid down next to me."

"Was that unusual for the two of you?"

"Not really. His back was against me," she explained, "so he didn't see my own tears."

"What caused you to cry?"

"I suppose I felt my own grief. And for a moment, perhaps, I cried for my younger self."

"Is there anything else you would like to tell me about Sebastian before we move on?"

"I can only assume we'll be talking about me next."

"Yes, Kathryn."

"I suppose I could tell you more about his childhood. I could even tell you about how his parents divorcing effected his life. I know that that's the kind of stuff you guys eat up. But, alas, dissecting Sebastian's psyche is your job not mine. All I can really tell you is the day he found his mother in her bed dead hardened his heart. Being perceived as a poor, little, rich boy worked in his favor. Everyone just assumed that that was why he was the way he was."

"You don't believe that his privileged upbringing shaped him at all?"

"I suppose so. But his life had no purpose. It lacked meaning."

"Do you believe that you brought meaning into his life?"

"Yes, I do. I've previously referred to Sebastian as an artist. His work lacked passion as well as inspiration."

"Do you believe that you inspired him?"

"I was his muse. He found his equal in me. I knew all of his secrets. Now that I've somewhat explained Sebastian I'm sure you're eager to dissect my life."

"Whenever you're ready Kathryn..."

"You know what they say. There's no time like the present."

**A/N: Thank you for all of your kind reviews. They truly motivate me to write. This chapter was originally twice it's length. After the next chapter you will see what I mean. Keep the reviews coming... **


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